‘Spread the good brews’: Brew Peddler’s grand opening this Friday on South Hill
Brew Peddler, a new coffee shop on Spokane’s South Hill that had a soft opening last month, will begin serving food at its official grand opening celebration Friday.
The small shop is located at 802 E. 29th Ave., tucked into a strip mall next to Super 1 Foods and Rite Aid. It started by serving a variety of coffee, espresso and tea drinks. The menu starting Friday will feature a variety of sweet and savory scones and tarts, quiche, turnovers and a gluten-free almond quinoa cake. Seasonal baked goods are also planned.
Brew Peddler was born in a mobile coffee cart that Andrew Tye and his wife Liz started three years ago. The couple were regulars at local farmers markets and served drinks at special events. Now seemed the natural time to open a physical location, Tye said.
“I’ve been dreaming about this for 10 years,” he said. “I love the culture that is a cafe.”
A good cafe is a place to gather, whether it’s to meet friends or to study, Tye said. A cafe can also be a cultural hot spot and Tye said he wants to pair that with his love of food.
“I love music and art,” he said. “I love the culinary world and food.”
Owning a cafe wasn’t originally on Tye’s radar.
“It just all kind of clicked in college when I was trying to figure out what to do with those interests,” he said.
He got a business degree from Sierra College in California, then attended the Culinary Institute of America. He began working his way up the West Coast to Seattle and worked for some Michelin star chefs along the way. After years of working in restaurants, Tye decided to shift to the morning coffee and culinary scene. Instead of opening a shop in Seattle, he looked east to Spokane, where his family resided.
“The cost of a lease in Seattle, I couldn’t see how it would pencil out to start a business there,” he said.
After operating the mobile cart for years, the space on 29th Avenue seemed perfect because of its affordability and the foot traffic from the busy stores next door.
“It just makes sense,” he said.
Tye doesn’t mind that his location does not have a drive-thru. He wants to encourage people to come inside to create the cafe atmosphere.
“It’s part of the point to me, too, the community aspect of it,” he said.
Tye roasts his own coffee, which he purchases from Royal Importers. The company sources its coffee from small farmers in different countries. In the future, Tye said he’d like to get to know some of the farmers and begin purchasing from them directly. He has an upcoming trip to Costa Rica scheduled with that goal in mind.
“We’re working on those relationships,” he said.
Brew Peddlers serves tea from Revival Tea Company and uses beverage flavorings from Spiceology, both local companies.
Tye said his goal is to do everything from scratch.
“I think it speaks to attention to detail,” he said. “I love the science of food. It’s a huge passion of mine.”
Liz Tye has experience as a baker, having previously worked for Bouchon Bakery in Napa Valley, and will oversee all the baked goods, Tye said. The couple plans to expand the food menu in the future as business picks up.
“I have some ideas, maybe some biscuits and gravy,” Tye said.
Business has been good as the shop approaches its official grand opening, Tye said.
“We’ve been busier than we thought we would be, at least on paper, but we still need to get our name out there and get a little busier.”
The name Brew Peddler came about during a discussion with his father, Tye said.
“I guess the idea is like the old-school newspaper peddler,” he said. “We’re peddling caffeine, if you will. Our motto is ‘Spread the good brews.’ “
The shop is open from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, though Tye said he hopes to be open seven days a week in the future. The Brew Peddler mobile coffee cart remains available for special events.